Facilities manager to operations manager
A facilities manager already meets 45% of what the operations manager role asks for. The move turns on 9 required skills not yet in the profile.
65.9/ 100
1 How much of what an operations manager is expected to do is already part of a facilities manager’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the operations manager role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
An operations manager role treats 15 of its required skills as things a facilities manager already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- corporate social responsibility
- energy conservation
- ensure equipment availability
- ensure equipment maintenance
- establish daily priorities
- evaluate employees
What stands in the way is 9 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 33 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An operations manager role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a facilities manager background worth leading with.
- already held manage facilities services management skills
- already held oversee the facilities services budget management skills
- already held promote facilities management services communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held facilities management in the organisation business, administration and law
- already held plan buildings maintenance work management skills
- already held supervise daily information operations management skills
All 33 carried skills, including the 15 the operations manager role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 58 missing skills fall into 9 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn apply change management required
- still to learn develop staff required
- still to learn make strategic business decisions required
- still to learn manage profitability required
- still to learn perform project management required
- optional, not held develop revenue generation strategies optional
- optional, not held budget for financial needs optional
- optional, not held control financial resources optional
- optional, not held create project specifications optional
- optional, not held develop business case optional
- optional, not held make investment decisions optional
- optional, not held manage several projects optional
- optional, not held meet deadlines optional
- optional, not held perform quality audits optional
- optional, not held set quality assurance objectives optional
- optional, not held shape organisational teams based on competencies optional
- still to learn operations management required
- still to learn project management required
- still to learn quality standards required
- optional, not held insourcing strategy optional
- optional, not held internal risk management policy optional
- optional, not held organisational resilience optional
- optional, not held outsourcing strategy optional
- optional, not held quality assurance methodologies optional
- still to learn build business relationships required
- optional, not held advise on utility consumption optional
- optional, not held implement corporate governance optional
- optional, not held maintain relationship with suppliers optional
- optional, not held promote innovative infrastructure design optional
- optional, not held advise on efficiency improvements optional
- optional, not held align efforts towards business development optional
- optional, not held impart business plans to collaborators optional
- optional, not held liaise with government officials optional
- optional, not held negotiate terms with suppliers optional
- optional, not held negotiate with stakeholders optional
- optional, not held support managers optional
- optional, not held train employees optional
- optional, not held write work-related reports optional
- optional, not held assess supplier risks optional
- optional, not held create a financial report optional
- optional, not held evaluate project plans optional
- optional, not held manage project information optional
- optional, not held assess financial viability optional
- optional, not held control of expenses optional
- optional, not held estimate duration of work optional
- optional, not held estimate profitability optional
- optional, not held interpret financial statements optional
- optional, not held make data-driven decisions optional
- optional, not held manage project metrics optional
- optional, not held perform resource planning optional
- optional, not held provide cost benefit analysis reports optional
- optional, not held adhere to organisational guidelines optional
- optional, not held oversee quality control optional
- optional, not held database quality standards optional
- optional, not held information confidentiality optional
3 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries an operations manager role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 operations management study this
- 02 project management study this
- 03 apply change management practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 33 skills that carry over
- already held corporate social responsibility knowledge
- already held energy conservation knowledge
- already held ensure equipment availability skill
- already held ensure equipment maintenance skill
- already held establish daily priorities skill
- already held evaluate employees skill
- already held follow company standards skill
- already held liaise with managers skill
- already held manage budgets skill
- already held manage logistics skill
- already held manage staff skill
- already held manage supplies skill
- already held strive for company growth skill
- already held supervise daily information operations skill
- already held supply chain management knowledge
- already held accounting knowledge
- already held contract law knowledge
- already held create solutions to problems skill
- already held employment law knowledge
- already held facilities management in the organisation knowledge
- already held handle customer complaints skill
- already held maintain customer service skill
- already held maintain relationship with customers skill
- already held manage facilities services skill
- already held manage maintenance operations skill
- already held manage major incidents skill
- already held oversee the facilities services budget skill
- already held perform procurement processes skill
- already held perform risk analysis skill
- already held plan buildings maintenance work skill
- already held promote facilities management services skill
- already held recruit employees skill
- already held supervise work skill
The 3 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held manufacturing processes optional
- optional, not held security regulations optional
- optional, not held manage standard enterprise resource planning system optional
49 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held advise on utility consumption optional
- optional, not held assess supplier risks optional
- optional, not held create a financial report optional
- optional, not held database quality standards optional
- optional, not held develop revenue generation strategies optional
- optional, not held evaluate project plans optional
- optional, not held implement corporate governance optional
- optional, not held information confidentiality optional
- optional, not held insourcing strategy optional
- optional, not held internal risk management policy optional
- optional, not held maintain relationship with suppliers optional
- optional, not held manage project information optional
- optional, not held manage standard enterprise resource planning system optional
- optional, not held organisational resilience optional
- optional, not held outsourcing strategy optional
- optional, not held promote innovative infrastructure design optional
- optional, not held security regulations optional
- optional, not held adhere to organisational guidelines optional
- optional, not held advise on efficiency improvements optional
- optional, not held align efforts towards business development optional
- optional, not held assess financial viability optional
- optional, not held budget for financial needs optional
- optional, not held control financial resources optional
- optional, not held control of expenses optional
- optional, not held create project specifications optional
- optional, not held develop business case optional
- optional, not held estimate duration of work optional
- optional, not held estimate profitability optional
- optional, not held impart business plans to collaborators optional
- optional, not held interpret financial statements optional
- optional, not held liaise with government officials optional
- optional, not held make data-driven decisions optional
- optional, not held make investment decisions optional
- optional, not held manage project metrics optional
- optional, not held manage several projects optional
- optional, not held manufacturing processes optional
- optional, not held meet deadlines optional
- optional, not held negotiate terms with suppliers optional
- optional, not held negotiate with stakeholders optional
- optional, not held oversee quality control optional
9 further entries not listed here
23 held skills the operations manager role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role building automation knowledge
- not needed by the target role carry out energy management of facilities skill
- not needed by the target role cleaning industry health and safety measures knowledge
- not needed by the target role design building retrofitting solutions skill
- not needed by the target role electrical power safety regulations knowledge
- not needed by the target role energy market knowledge
- not needed by the target role energy performance of buildings knowledge
- not needed by the target role ensure compliance with noise standards skill
- not needed by the target role ensure inspections of facilities skill
- not needed by the target role environmental management standards knowledge
- not needed by the target role fire safety regulations knowledge
- not needed by the target role green building practices knowledge
- not needed by the target role handle surveillance equipment skill
- not needed by the target role inspect building systems skill
- not needed by the target role inspect contracts for related grounds maintenance work skill
- not needed by the target role liaise with security authorities skill
- not needed by the target role manage emergency evacuation plans skill
- not needed by the target role manage space utilisation skill
- not needed by the target role plan facilities management policies skill
- not needed by the target role plan health and safety procedures skill
- not needed by the target role plan schedule skill
- not needed by the target role read standard blueprints skill
- not needed by the target role respond to burglar alarm systems skill
12 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn operations management required
- still to learn project management required
- still to learn quality standards required
- optional, not held database quality standards optional
- optional, not held information confidentiality optional
- optional, not held insourcing strategy optional
- optional, not held internal risk management policy optional
- optional, not held organisational resilience optional
- optional, not held outsourcing strategy optional
- optional, not held security regulations optional
- optional, not held manufacturing processes optional
- optional, not held quality assurance methodologies optional
Common questions about this move
Can a facilities manager become an operations manager?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A facilities manager already covers 45% of what an operations manager is expected to do: 33 skills carry over, 15 of which the operations manager role treats as required.
What skills does a facilities manager need to become an operations manager?
9 required skills are missing, plus 49 optional ones. They fall into 9 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by management skills. The single most important is operations management.
How hard is the move from facilities manager to operations manager?
Its learning distance is 65.9 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.